Chapter 200: This is What Magic Is
Chapter 200: This is What Magic Is
With the help of Iris and Iona, we flew straight to the middle of the waterfall in one go.
As Elisha parted the cascading water, the gate hidden behind it revealed itself.
Helena swallowed hard before speaking.
“…Now that I think about it, this is my first time actually trying to clear a dungeon, Brother.”
“Is that so? You’re a priestess of the Righteous Light, so I figured you’d have been in plenty of fights. That’s unexpected.”
“Yes. I’ve killed many things, but they were all managed dungeons, like the practice dungeon we were in before.”
“Aha.”
Dungeons were profitable.
Because of that, most dungeons were managed by the lord of the territory, who generated revenue by harvesting monster materials or rare resources from within.
It was that very complacent mindset that eventually allowed the cultists to trigger simultaneous dungeon outbreaks and cause monster waves later on, but…
For now, dungeons were treated as little more than mines.
Naturally, you weren't supposed to actually "clear" these dungeons. No one wants to slice open the belly of a platypus that lays golden eggs, after all.
Unless a dungeon was truly dangerous, the lords usually restricted access to anything beyond a certain depth.
Besides, Helena wasn't exactly at the level where she’d be recruited for the kind of high-risk dungeons that required a full clearing.
“Well, clearing a dungeon isn't that big of a deal, so don't worry. …Actually, try not to get too excited.”
“Ah… Calmly… Yes. I understand.”
Helena looked embarrassed, like someone whose inner thoughts had just been read.
I let out a small chuckle and nodded toward Iris and Iona.
“Let’s head in.”
The gate drew closer. I threw myself toward the swirling vortex of blue particles.
In an instant, the scenery warped and transformed completely.
Though I had been floating several meters in the air just a moment ago, I felt the solid texture of the earth beneath my feet. The thunderous roar of the waterfall and the sensation of cold spray clinging to my skin vanished.
In their place, a vast, open meadow stretched out before my eyes.
Aside from a few scattered trees, the terrain was devoid of any significant obstacles.
The women naturally drew their weapons as they surveyed the surroundings. I also pulled out my dagger and iron staff as I spoke.
“Fortunately, it’s just as I expected. It’s a wave-type. The monsters are slimes. They’re just ordinary Acid Slimes, but be careful because they’ll eventually merge with each other.”
“Yes! Master!”
“Leave this side to us.”
Carla and Elisha nodded, preparing for battle.
Perhaps deciding they didn't need to step in yet, Iris and Iona stood leisurely in the center.
Since this was a good opportunity for the others to gain combat experience, they likely wouldn't interfere unless something went wrong.
Fay, whose combat power was lower, was hiding between the two of them, giving a small wave.
Seeing us take up positions with such perfect coordination, Helena blinked in bewilderment.
“Um… Brother? Have you perhaps been to this dungeon before?”
“It’s my first time here in person. I only knew about it through information… Ah, Priestess Helena, please stand next to me. The monsters will be swarming soon.”
“Oh, right.”
Even so, perhaps because we were in a dungeon, Helena was quite obedient. She stood by my side and drew her mace.
The way it shimmered suggested it wasn't just well-maintained; it felt as though some special power resided within it.
I wondered why she always carried that mace even when she was praying… It seemed she had been consecrating it every single day.
Helena swung the mace through the air to loosen up her shoulders and spoke in a cautious voice.
“Regarding that information… was it from the people who took you away after you defeated Ayla the Beholder?”
“Well… the Church of Light sent reinforcements that day, so you probably have a general idea, Helena. You’re right. That’s where I got the info.”
“I’m sorry if it sounds like I’m prying. I just realized I didn't know much about you, and I got ahead of myself….”
“It’s fine. We agreed to spend time together during the break to get to know each other better anyway, didn't we?”
“Hehe. That’s true. Let’s save the deeper conversations for later… For now, I’ll start by giving you some buffs.”
Helena glared at the gelatinous masses slowly rising from the ground as she began to recite a prayer.
A light brightly illuminated the surroundings. Perhaps she had grown since the dungeon practice, as it wasn't just an individual buff but a wide-area group buff.
“Oh….”
First was a standard physical enhancement. One of the advantages of Divine Arts was that they could be layered with magic or Aura for cumulative strengthening.
While Divine Arts were called physical enhancements, they were fundamentally different—it was more like a god exerting power on your behalf.
Glug. Gurgle.
The slimes began to take shape on the ground that had once been a simple meadow.
Some resembled humans, some resembled beasts, and some were just simple lumps.
Though each slime took a different form, they all shared one commonality.
A dark red core was visible somewhere inside their translucent bodies.
As their cores glowed and their bodily fluids turned dark red, Helena’s second buff activated.
“…The Lord’s fortress shall manifest here!”
A faint radiance enveloped our bodies. It was Light's Fortress, a buff specialized in absorbing physical attacks.
Against ordinary slimes with no real magical abilities, this was the best defense.
It didn't matter if their bodies were acidic; they had to make physical contact to attack, and their raw strength wasn't that high to begin with.
Boing! Boing! Boing!
While I was lost in thought for a moment, the slimes finally began lunging toward us.
They were barely knee-high. Even if they had high resistance to physical attacks, at that size, it was practically meaningless.
The danger of this dungeon lay in the fact that it was a wave-type.
This type of dungeon was created when monsters that had been clustered together were suddenly trapped inside.
Compared to other dungeons, the individual strength of the monsters was often lower, but their numbers were several times higher.
And the moment someone entered the dungeon, they would sense it and attack all at once.
However, this was a party of mages who were experts in area-of-effect attacks and mass slaughter.
No matter how many there were, we wouldn't be pushed back by sub-par opponents.
If anything, they were like moving targets, perfect for testing what we had learned so far.
I aimed my staff at the approaching dark red wave of slimes.
“The ones behind us are stronger than us, so you don't need to worry about that side. Just focus on the enemies in front of you.”
“Understood. …So, when should I charge?”
“I’m a mage. I don't do things like charging.”
“Ah, right… I’m sorry….”
Helena looked visibly dejected. Come to think of it, I did use my blade quite often for a mage.
Hearing our conversation, Iona spoke up in a cheerful voice.
“Student Yandel! Student Yandel! Iris and I are watching anyway, so feel free to go wild however you want! Besides… isn't this the perfect environment to test what you learned from me?”
“Huh?”
True. These things were relatively slow, and their attack power wasn't enough to break through my shield.
I even had Helena’s Divine Arts support right now.
Unless it was the colossal slime that appeared at the end of the wave, there was no danger.
After a brief moment of deliberation, I nodded.
“Alright. But I’ll try using a few intermediate spells first.”
“Yep, yep! You needed some field experience with those anyway. There are plenty of monsters, so do whatever feels comfortable!”
I shrugged and spoke to Helena.
“Since that’s the case, I’ll fire off a few spells from a distance, and then we’ll charge together.”
“…Yes!”
Helena nodded with a look of pure bliss on her face. Her shoulders were already twitching; she seemed to be looking forward to it immensely.
I gave a small smirk at her innocent—in a way—display and looked at the slimes still bouncing toward us.
Let’s see… It would be best to use a spell I haven't tried yet.
Thump.
As I drew up my mana, my heart naturally responded. A heavy thumping sound, audible only to me, resonated through my surroundings.
Feeling the atmospheric mana respond, I slowly opened my mouth.
“『Breath of the tyrant. Raging fury. Shredding sharpness. I pray, bring calamity upon me.』”
Wooooong—
Each word that left my lips became a declaration, etched into the world.
The mana within my body and the mana in the atmosphere mixed together, taking the shape of my will.
The image I visualized was a swirling gale of blades.
“『Sharpness Hurricane.』”
Even after I recited the activation phrase, nothing happened for a brief moment.
Just as the excited Helena began to tilt her head in confusion, the center of the slime swarm suddenly bulged upward.
Fwoooo—
Then, the peaceful wind turned violent in an instant, beginning to concentrate toward the protruding area.
The wind, which had only been enough to make a few slimes wobble, swallowed the surrounding air and grew larger and larger.
The breeze became a whirlwind, and the whirlwind became a gale of blades.
And the gale of blades spiraled into a small tempest.
Kwaaaaaaaa——!!
Its terrifying majesty was evident even from a distance.
A merciless spell unfolded, pulling in all the slimes in the vicinity while simultaneously grinding everything it touched into fine pieces.
Watching the sight—which was refreshing just to look at—I felt a surge of emotion welling up inside me.
Yes. This is magic.
Damn, this is what I call magic….
This feeling of wiping out enemies all at once is exactly why people play mages.
I was momentarily moved by the power, which was on a completely different level from the low-grade magic or the elemental combinations I had used until now.
But for some reason, Helena, who was standing next to me, started stomping her feet impatiently.
“…There are still plenty left, so don't worry, Priestess Helena.”
“Phew. That’s a relief.”
She really was an easy person to read.